The Technomancer

The Technomancer, an Action RPG released in 2016, presents a unique challenge for modern hardware. This analysis examines the measured performance of the Intel Core i3-12100F paired with the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090. The data shows a combination of a 4-core/8-thread CPU and a flagship GPU, producing results that range from high-refresh-rate 1080p gaming to playable 4K. The following sections break down the benchmark results, settings behavior, and the role each component plays in this specific title.

FAQ

Q: What is the highest average frame rate recorded for this combo?

A: The highest recorded average frame rate is 247 FPS, achieved at 1920x1080 resolution with Low settings. This indicates the game can run at exceptionally high speeds when visual demands are minimized, even with a 4-core processor.

Q: How does the combo rank among all tested configurations for this game?

A: The combination of the Intel Core i3-12100F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 ranks 163rd out of 3696 tested combos for The Technomancer. This places it in the top 5% of all tested systems, demonstrating strong overall performance despite the potential CPU bottleneck.

Q: What is the average frame rate at 4K Ultra settings?

A: At 3840x2160 resolution with Ultra settings, the average frame rate drops to 61 FPS. This is the most demanding preset tested and yields the lowest score, but it remains above the 60 FPS threshold for smooth gameplay.

Q: Is the CPU or GPU more likely to be the limiting factor at 1080p?

A: The data suggests the CPU is the limiting factor at 1080p. The frame rate difference between Low (247 FPS) and Ultra (169 FPS) settings is only 78 FPS, indicating that the GPU has headroom to render more frames, but the processor's 4 cores and 8 threads constrain the final output.

Q: What is the average frame rate difference between Medium and High settings at 1440p?

A: At 2560x1440 resolution, the average frame rate drops from 165 FPS on Medium settings to 141 FPS on High settings. This represents a 24 FPS difference, showing a moderate performance cost for the visual improvements from Medium to High.

Q: Does the RTX 4090's large VRAM capacity impact results in this game?

A: The RTX 4090 features 24 GB of GDDR6X memory, which is far beyond what The Technomancer requires. The measured frame rates indicate that VRAM capacity is not a bottleneck; performance is instead governed by the CPU's processing power and the GPU's rendering speed.

Settings Recommendations

The measured data provides a clear picture of how different presets affect performance across resolutions. For players seeking the best balance of visual quality and frame rate, the Medium preset offers the most compelling experience. At 1920x1080, Medium produces an average of 225 FPS, which is only 22 FPS lower than Low but substantially higher than High's 213 FPS and Ultra's 169 FPS. The Medium preset also provides a minimum frame rate of 191 FPS at 1080p, ensuring consistent performance without significant dips.

Moving to 2560x1440, the Medium preset continues to excel with an average of 165 FPS and a minimum of 140 FPS. This is 76 FPS higher than Ultra's 110 FPS and 24 FPS higher than High's 141 FPS. The gap between Low and Medium at this resolution is 50 FPS, but Medium's visual improvements justify the performance cost for most users. At 3840x2160, Medium yields 91 FPS on average with a minimum of 77 FPS and a maximum of 104 FPS. This is the only 4K preset that comfortably exceeds 60 FPS while maintaining a playable minimum frame rate.

The Ultra preset is only recommended for players with 60 Hz displays at 4K, where its 61 FPS average is passable. However, at 1440p, Ultra's 110 FPS is less attractive when Medium offers 165 FPS. High settings offer a middle ground, but the data shows diminishing returns compared to Medium. The recommendation is to use Medium settings for the smoothest experience, as the performance gains from dropping to Low are modest, while the visual quality improvements from High and Ultra come at a significant frame rate cost.

CPU Role

The Intel Core i3-12100F is a 4-core, 8-thread processor from the Alder Lake architecture, with a base clock of 3.30 GHz and a boost clock of 4.30 GHz. Its benchmark results show strong single-thread performance, with a 3dmark_single_thread score of 893 and a cinebench_r23_singlecore score of 1674. However, its multi-threaded capabilities are limited by the core count, as evidenced by the cinebench_r23_multicore score of 11860, which is substantially lower than the single-core score would suggest.

In The Technomancer, the CPU's role becomes increasingly important as resolution decreases. At 1920x1080, the frame rates across all settings are remarkably high, ranging from 169 FPS on Ultra to 247 FPS on Low. The relatively small gap between these settings, especially compared to the GPU's raw power, indicates that the i3-12100F is the primary bottleneck at this resolution. The processor's 8 threads are likely being saturated by the game's logic and draw call processing, preventing the RTX 4090 from reaching its full potential.

The CPU's performance relative to its rivals is noteworthy. The nearest rival, the Intel Core 3 N355, has an average benchmark score of 13492, which is nearly identical to the i3-12100F's 13494, resulting in a deltaPct of 0. The i5-9500 scores 13452, just 0.3% lower, while the Core 5 120UL scores 13594, which is 0.7% higher. This places the i3-12100F in a competitive position for its class, but the 4-core design remains a limiting factor for high-refresh-rate gaming in CPU-bound scenarios.

How This Combo Ranks

The combination of the Intel Core i3-12100F and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 achieves a rank of 163 out of 3696 tested combinations for The Technomancer. This places the configuration in the 95th percentile of all tested systems, indicating that it outperforms the vast majority of setups evaluated by the database. The rank reflects the overall balance of CPU and GPU capabilities, rather than just raw frame rates.

The high rank is primarily driven by the RTX 4090's exceptional rendering capabilities. The GPU's average benchmark score of 60347 places it in the 88th percentile of all GPUs, and its nearest rival, the Intel Arc Pro A60, scores 60326, representing a deltaPct of 0. The RTX 4090's performance is nearly unmatched, which helps compensate for the i3-12100F's more modest standing. The CPU's average benchmark score of 13494 places it in the 68th percentile of all CPUs, which is respectable but not elite.

The ranking suggests that this combo is well-suited for The Technomancer, even with the CPU bottleneck at lower resolutions. The system's ability to maintain high frame rates at 1440p and playable rates at 4K demonstrates that the GPU's power can overcome the CPU's limitations in most scenarios. The 163rd rank is a strong result, though it is likely lower than what the RTX 4090 could achieve with a higher-core-count processor.

GPU Role

The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 is a flagship graphics card based on the Ada Lovelace architecture, featuring 24 GB of GDDR6X memory on a 384-bit bus, providing 1.01 TB/s of bandwidth. Its core clocks are 2235 MHz base and 2520 MHz boost, with 16384 shading units and 128 RT cores. The GPU's compute capabilities are substantial, with an FP32 performance of 82.58 TFLOPS, placing it far ahead of most other graphics cards.

In The Technomancer, the RTX 4090's role is to render frames as quickly as the CPU allows. At 3840x2160, the GPU is the primary bottleneck, as evidenced by the frame rate scaling from 61 FPS on Ultra to 118 FPS on Low. The 57 FPS difference between these settings shows that the GPU is working harder at higher presets, with the 4K resolution demanding significant pixel throughput. The GPU's pixel rate of 443.5 GPixel/s and texture rate of 1,290.2 GTexel/s are more than sufficient for this game's requirements.

The GPU's benchmark scores confirm its dominance. The passmark_g3d score of 38194 is exceptionally high, and the geekbench_opencl score of 255416 indicates strong compute performance. The GPU's average benchmark score of 60347 places it in the 88th percentile of all GPUs, with its nearest rival, the Intel Arc Pro A60, scoring 60326 (deltaPct 0). The RTX 4090's 24 GB of VRAM is far more than The Technomancer needs, as the game's 2016 release date means it was designed for much smaller memory pools, so VRAM capacity is never a limiting factor.

Measured FPS Breakdown

The measured FPS data provides a comprehensive view of performance across three resolutions and four settings presets. At 1920x1080, the average frame rates range from 169 FPS on Ultra to 247 FPS on Low. The Medium preset scores 225 FPS with a minimum of 191 FPS and a maximum of 259 FPS, while High scores 213 FPS. These results indicate that 1080p gaming is exceptionally smooth, with even the heaviest preset remaining well above 144 Hz.

At 2560x1440, the frame rates remain high but show more variation between presets. Low settings produce 215 FPS, Medium produces 165 FPS with a minimum of 140 FPS and a maximum of 190 FPS, High produces 141 FPS, and Ultra drops to 110 FPS. The 105 FPS difference between Low and Ultra at this resolution is more pronounced than at 1080p, indicating that the GPU is becoming a more significant factor as pixel count increases.

At 3840x2160, the performance gap between presets widens further. Low settings achieve 118 FPS, Medium achieves 91 FPS with a minimum of 77 FPS and a maximum of 104 FPS, High achieves 77 FPS, and Ultra drops to 61 FPS. The 57 FPS difference between Low and Ultra at 4K is the largest of any resolution, confirming that the GPU is the primary bottleneck at this setting. The medium preset's minimum of 77 FPS ensures that even the most demanding scenes remain fluid, while Ultra's 61 FPS average is barely playable.

Resolution Scaling

The data shows how frame rates scale as resolution increases from 1080p to 4K, revealing the limiting component at each stage. At Low settings, the average frame rate drops from 247 FPS at 1080p to 215 FPS at 1440p and 118 FPS at 4K. This represents a 13% decrease from 1080p to 1440p and a 52% decrease from 1440p to 4K. The relatively small drop from 1080p to 1440p suggests that the CPU is limiting performance at lower resolutions, as the GPU has enough headroom to handle the increased pixel count without a proportional frame rate loss.

At Medium settings, the frame rates are 225 FPS at 1080p, 165 FPS at 1440p, and 91 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 27%, while the drop from 1440p to 4K is 45%. This indicates that the GPU's workload is increasing more significantly as resolution rises, but the CPU still plays a role at 1080p. At High settings, the frame rates are 213 FPS at 1080p, 141 FPS at 1440p, and 77 FPS at 4K, showing a 34% drop from 1080p to 1440p and a 45% drop from 1440p to 4K.

At Ultra settings, the frame rates are 169 FPS at 1080p, 110 FPS at 1440p, and 61 FPS at 4K. The drop from 1080p to 1440p is 35%, and the drop from 1440p to 4K is 45%. The consistent 45% drop from 1440p to 4K across all settings indicates that the GPU is fully utilized at 4K, while the smaller drops from 1080p to 1440p at lower settings confirm that the CPU limits performance at 1080p. The scaling behavior demonstrates that the RTX 4090 is the bottleneck at 4K, while the i3-12100F constrains performance at 1080p.